Ticks will be accepted only from residents of
Connecticut. Ticks should be submitted by residents to their municipal health
departments. The health departments will then submit ticks to us with a request
for identification and/or testing for the causative agents for Lyme disease,
anaplasmosis, and babesiosis.

Tick
testing is offered by The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station as a
public service and there is no fee for tick identification and/or testing.
Municipalities or local health departments/districts may charge a nominal
fee for handling and mailing.

What
information should be submitted with the tick?

The CAES Tick Submission Form should be completely
filled out and packaged along with your tick. Please read the entire form
carefully to ensure you are providing the proper information. Please leave a
note if you are submitting more than one tick with a single submission form.

The form can be filled out and printed in your internet browser and is
available here: Tick
Submission Form

How
should ticks be prepared for sending?

Preparing the tick:

Do
not place the tick on tape.

Ticks should be placed in a crush-proof
container, but if one is not available a sealed plastic bag will suffice.

Do not package the tick in glass or in
other fragile containers.

Do not package the tick with any
objects. This includes paper towels, cotton swabs, plant matter, bandages, or
any other materials.

Do not place the tick in any solution.
This includes substances like water and alcohol. All ticks should be submitted
dry.

Preparing the envelope:

The crush-proof container housing the
tick should be tightly sealed and packaged in a padded envelope.

If a padded envelope is not available, a
small sheet of bubble wrap can be added to a regular envelope to help protect
the tick from being damaged.

Please request the mail carrier to
handle the envelope containing tick manually and not through a machine. “Please
hand sort” can be written on the envelope to help achieve this.

Where
should tick samples be sent?

If you are unable to send the tick through your
local health department, please submit samples directly to:

Samples may also be dropped off in-person at the
Tick Testing Laboratory located at the aforementioned address.

Do all ticks submitted get tested for Lyme disease?

We accept all ticks for identification but only test
those who have a risk of transmitting the causative agents of Lyme disease,
anaplasmosis, and babesiosis to a human host. Due to limited resources at the Tick
Testing Program and relatively small percentage of ticks infected, ticks are
not currently tested for Powassan virus. However, in view of the potential
human health risk, preparations are underway to test ticks for this virus, in
addition to the other pathogens. Ixodes scapularis, also known as the
blacklegged or deer tick, is the primary vector for these pathogens and is the
only species of tick tested in our lab. We do not test the American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis), or the lone
star tick (Amblyomma americanum) as
they are not vectors for the aforementioned disease-causing agents.

Larval ticks of all species are not tested as they
have not had the opportunity to become infected with any pathogens. Ticks that
are unengorged are not tested. Ticks need to feed for nearly 40 hours to
transmit the causative organisms of Lyme disease to humans, though this may
vary for anaplasmosis and babesiosis. Ticks without blood in their midguts have
not been attached long enough to pose a risk of infection. Male ticks are not
tested as they rarely and briefly engage in blood-feeding and have not been
documented to transmit pathogens.

Due to limited resources, we only test ticks that
have fed on humans. If you submit a tick
found on your pet, it will be identified to the species level and engorgement
status but will not be tested.

How
are results communicated and how long does it take to receive a report?

Results are communicated via e-mail only. Please
wait for communication from the Tick Testing Laboratory for results. Phone
inquiries cause delays in the analyses of ticks. If you submitted your tick
through your health department they may communicate the results to you as well.

Reporting time depends largely on the number of
ticks received throughout the year. During high points in tick activity,
processing time may be delayed. Ticks are tested on a first-come first-serve
basis.